Two Sigma Advisers LP Purchases 2,241,500 Shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN)

Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) by 173.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,531,700 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,241,500 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP’s holdings in Franklin Resources were worth $71,658,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Franklin Resources during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,676,000. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in Franklin Resources by 132.7% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,935,292 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $59,557,000 after acquiring an additional 1,673,971 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 33.1% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,438,863 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $130,645,000 after acquiring an additional 1,599,849 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Franklin Resources by 19.6% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 9,403,875 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock worth $190,805,000 after acquiring an additional 1,542,478 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi grew its position in shares of Franklin Resources by 62.9% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 3,752,326 shares of the closed-end fund’s stock valued at $75,928,000 after purchasing an additional 1,449,210 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.56% of the company’s stock.

Franklin Resources Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:BEN opened at $22.22 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.68 billion, a PE ratio of 34.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.66. Franklin Resources, Inc. has a 52-week low of $16.25 and a 52-week high of $24.37. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $19.26 and a 200 day moving average of $20.25.

Franklin Resources (NYSE:BEN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The closed-end fund reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47. The firm had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.44 billion. Franklin Resources had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 4.32%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.56 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Franklin Resources, Inc. will post 2.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BEN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays increased their price objective on Franklin Resources from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Franklin Resources from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Franklin Resources from $19.00 to $21.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Franklin Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.25.

Franklin Resources Company Profile

Franklin Resources, Inc is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides its services to individuals, institutions, pension plans, trusts, and partnerships. It launches equity, fixed income, balanced, and multi-asset mutual funds through its subsidiaries.